Which is better - to construct or buy whole bike with engine?

[sparky]

If you're trying to save some cash.... CUSTOMIZE!!

Find a decent bike frame that you'd like to motorize, then get a kit for it. I wouldn't want to motorize anything besides a full-suspension bike, so I'd only look at rack-mount setups. But that's just me.

 

[Romantmr]

Hi John,
I also am in the same boat as yourself. I was wondering if you did get the Wildfire as I am leaning towards this as well.

For me, one of the deciding factors is that I want to register the bike. The police in NJ are pretty tough and I don't want to be harrased. It appears from the website assembly manual that they have a true VIN number and Title.

Any imput would be more than helpful

Thanks

 

[John-Forrest]

Dear Romantr:

WildFire does send a title as they are legally required to in state of Ohio that apparently has tight regs regarding motorbikes. The Vin is hard to read, I wound up writing down engine # and MA registry didn't care.

I have to warn you the accessories are pretty minimal. The light is very dim and doesn't work for me (I still have to fix it). It has flashing tail-lights that can only be seen at night. You'll want to put a better mirror on LEFT side. If you have to register like a motorcycle and get inspected you may have some problems. I only got away with it because mopeds don't need to be inspected in MA.

The frame and wheels are better than an ordinary bike, though you may want to raise the seat and get a longer seatpost. I'm replacing clutch. In short, you will need to do some re-modeling to make it comfortable. Oh, and watch out for engine chain - it broke because I tightened too much.

Their service is better than usual - and they do supply advice and parts. (Unlike Tank which refuses to deal directly with customers).

Hope that helps,
John

 

[sparky]

Wildfire looks like they make a pretty good bike. I love how they have many different wheel options.

Dimension Edge looks like a pretty decent company I'd consider buying from, but I don't see their prices listed too much. What's up with their Mitsu "ENCORE" engine? How can a friction drive have multiple gears??

 

[John-Forrest]

WildFire Follow-up

I've had this WildFire MotorBike for about 2 months now and I should post a reply. As it turned out, I had to shell out a couple of hundred bucks more to rebuild it to make more road-worthy. Engine was not mounted on tightly enough and wound up falling loose from frame. Lights suck, had to replace them, using a LED bike light. Replaced chain, kept breaking or slipping. Replaced chain tensioner. Replaced bike/engine mechanism with lock on handle. Put Kevlar tires on, factory rear tire tore to shreds within a few weeks. Had to spend $150 to have shop mount engine VERY tight - since then haven't had things breaking off. Put some baskets on.

I'm happy to say I now have it in optimal condition. I actually managed to go on a lightweight camping backpacking trip with no mechanical disasters. Except for the fact that it doesn't handle poorly paved roads well or very steep inclines. Had to push up one road going right over a mountain, nearly keeled over!

One thing I'll say is you really have to peddle HARD to get up long steep hills; you can't pause or you lose momentum! Highway hills are better since they tend to be designed for big trucks; inclines are less steep. But stay off rough backroads! I finally found out that the way to do it is rev the throttle all the way up and keep peddling. One nice thing is I can pull in handle, turn off engine to let it cool off once I'm over summit. I really enjoy the interval of silence and no rattling just rolling down a long hill, more peaceful! Also, you get better gas mileage that way. Then I put engine back on when I'm near bottom of hill.

On a more positive note, I will say I do like the frame on this bike and the one gallon tank. The company did send me replacements for chain and other things free. I think they need to upgrade the quality of attachments and they listened to my feedback. Except for engine itself and frame, everything else is super cheap and ready to break right out of the factory. Also I like the slight bigger wheels.

Next spring I will probably put on an 80 cc engine to climb hills better and keep up with traffic downtown. I think laws should be changed to say that a moped can have 80 cc engine - to encourage more people to buy these and save ourselves from ecological/economic disaster!

Feel free to ask me questions about this bike. Incidentally, everywhere I go, people come up to me and ask me about this. We are pioneers, setting examples to Americans that there ARE other ways to get around other than 2 ton steel boxes.